02 Sep Alfonso Altamura reviews the last summer campaign interviewed by Freshplaza journalists.
Rucola, lamb’s lettuce, and baby spinach, both conventional and organic, are just a few examples of baby leaf greens that have experienced a challenging commercial period during the summer, despite a rather high demand. The prospects for the winter season also do not appear to be very promising.
“The summer campaign did not show good performance. Issues have escalated, living costs remained high, and the organized retail sector did not respond as expected. For the winter season, some European customers are already requesting discounts. This is unfeasible, especially in light of the recent news about future diesel price increases.”
Indeed, Saudi Arabia and Russia, two OPEC Plus countries, have extended the oil production cut until December. Agricultural diesel prices had already been sharply rising in recent weeks (cf. FreshPlaza of 21/08/2023).
“Therefore, there is no room to reduce prices. Also, despite all the difficulties, we have maintained the same prices as last year,” continues the Op’s president. “We cannot cut costs on labor, as the workforce is vital for a company, and the cost of living has increased for everyone. Adding to this picture, there are the climate changes that are really putting us to the test. As far as we are concerned, we see a very critical year ahead.”
In the production sector, fewer and fewer agrochemicals can be used, and those that can be used have an increasingly higher cost. But without the necessary means, how can we fight aphids or flea beetles (which attack, for example, arugula) that affect productions?”
Another aspect is related to the generalized price increases on all horticultural productions, except for baby leaf greens and bagged salads of the I or IV range. “These references maintain a fairly stable price throughout the year, which represents certainty for final consumers. Over the past two years, in most major supermarket chains, the price of a bag of mixed salad or arugula has remained unchanged at around 1.20 euros. Compared to the generalized price increases, a fair price should be at least 10-15% higher, a percentage to be distributed among the various links in the supply chain.”
Regarding the price increases recorded for Italian-origin arugula at the wholesale market in Berlin in August (cf. FreshPlaza of 24/08/2023), Alfonso Altamura comments: “General markets do not represent the entire commercial reality. One must also consider trends in the retail sector. Furthermore, if Germans have local goods available, they buy those, as is the case in Switzerland and Austria. Imports only have a complementary value.”
